System for mining



' March 29,, 1927. 1,622,837

J. W. PEARCE SYSTEM FOR MINING Filed Dec. 6. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Imnior Jmesll] Pearce Zfiz'ZnesS A H 1H2, 1 Q

1 2 March 29, 9 7 J W PEARCE SYSTEM FOR MINING Filed Dec. 6. 1924 2Sheets-Sheet 2 M'Zfiess Werberi flazliea I use in coal mines where it isdesirous to leave" Patented Mari 29, 1927.

UNITED STATES 1,622,837 I PATENT OFF-ICE.

JAMES W. PEARCE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO GOODMANMAIIUFACTUBING COMPANY, 01 CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

This invention relates to improvements in systems for mining, and moreparticularly tosystems where. draft operated scraper My inventlon isparticularly adapted for pillars or supports at various intervals whilethe coal is bein mined. 3 Among the o jects of my, invention is theprovision of a system whereby scraper loaders are advantageously used ingathering loose material as it is dislodged along certain-working faces,and transported for loading upon mine cars.

More specifically he object is to provide a working plan or systemwherein the ma-' terial is worked, out along relatively long workingfaces so as to require a minimum. number of changesin the position ofthe scraper loading apparatus including the draft rope anchors and powerdevices as well as the loading chutes or platformsadjacent the minecars. where final loading is accomplished. i

Scraper loaders have heretofore been used more or less extensively as ameans of gathering or transporting loose material fromthe working facesof the mine tobe.

being operated y awinding engine or hoistin position to move thescraperreciprocably between theworking face and the loading station atanent where the mine cars are loaded: One of t e most etficient andsatisfactory methods heretofore employed in connection with scraperloaders is the so-called panel system of mining in which cross en.-tries substantially at right angles to each other are driven in thematerial to be mined so as. to form substantially rectangular blocks.Tracks are laid along certain of the sYs'rEm FOB MINING.

Application filed December a, 1924. Serial m5. 754,262.

entries .andcross entries and the scraper loader apparatus is positionedat such load- 'ing track to load out material through an entry at rightangles to said loading track,

the working face extending along one or no more blocks and beingprogressed laterally n a line substantially parallel with the loadingentry. lnsystems of this kind, however, itsis necessary to change theposition of the loading chute and thehoist quite often as the loadingoperation proceeds in each entry. lt is also more or less diflicult I toprovide for pillars spacedthe required 1 distance apart, it beingunderstood that the blocks are usually in'elongated form, and the 7plllar which would be lert alongthe center o of such a block isunnecessarily long, thus resulting in a loss of material which mightotherwise be obtained. As will be seen from the following description myimproved systeincontemplates a modified form of the panel systemof'mining in which the cross entries running in one direction aresubstantiallycontinuous and parallel with each other, wnile the entriesrunning in the opposo site direction are non-parallel, at Jeast througha portion of their length "and two adjacent entries converging at asubstantially common point at a; cross heading in which the loading isaccomplished. In this as manner blocks of irregular shape are formed butthe arrangement is such that the mate rial 'may be loaded out fromeither side of the blocks in the most economical manner, leaving pillarsa predetermined distance apart. v a

-'.lhe invention may be best understood by reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in which;

Figure 1 shows .a plan view of a mine with the entries driven to formpanels in accord-' ance with my invention;

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure l but drawn to a somewhat largerscale and showing the scraper loading apparatus in the process ofloading out the panels.

Figure 1 shows the initial arrangement of the entriesin carrying. out myimproved system. A series of panel entries 10, 10 are arranged at theright angles to a main entry 106 11. This latter. entry may form a mainhaulage line of the system with branch haulage lines running into theentries 10, 10 wherever necessary. The entries 12, 12 and 13, 13,extending between and connecting 110 and - 15, 15, said block 16 havingthe cross entries 10, 10, are arranged in pairs are non-parallel witheach other throughout a portion of their length. For instance, in theform shown the lower portions 12 and 13 of each pair of entries 12 and13 converge toward each other to meet at a common point of entry 14, soas to form an irregular block 15 between each pair of entries 12, and13. Another irregular block 16 is left between each of the adjacentblocks an enlarged lower portion 16 and a narrow extendedupper portion16". The arrangement is such that the blocks in succeeding tiers are instaggered form, the common entry 14 in the upper tier being in alignmentwith the narrowed portion 16 of the adjacent lower block 16. The objectof this staggered relationship will appear from a description of theloading operation which will now be described, having especial referenceto Figure 2.

In this Figure 2, two sets of loading apparatus are shown in operation,each comprising a scraper 20 having a hea'drope 21, tailrope 22,operatively connected to a winding engine 23. The scraper and Windingengine are of the usual form and need not be described in detail. I

Inthis Figure 2, two sets of loadingapparatus are shown in operation,each comprising a scraper 20 having a headrope 21, tailrope 22,operatively connected to a windto leave a pillar of which this line 33is the right hand margin. The opposite side of the block is then loadedout in a similar man ner by reversing the head and tail ropes so as tooperate in the entry 12 until a narrow strip of material is left alongthe centre of the block section 15 which strip forms also a pillar.Reference to the corresponding areas in the upper tier in Figure 2 showstwo block sections 15 which have been already loaded out to leavesimilar elongated pillars 35, 35, along the centre of the blocks. Whenthe upper tier of blocks 15, 15 have been completely worked out, leavingonly the pillars 35, 35 in the center thereof, loading is then carriedout in the next cross entry 10 below the first cross entry. Suitableloading tracks are shown in this second entry and a loading apparatussimilar to that already described is shown in operation. It will beobserved however, in the case of operations in the second or lower tier,that the guide devices or sheaves 25, 26 and 27 are all arranged inalignment with the same loading entries as shown herein, being on theright hand entry 13. Furthermore the uppermost guide sheaves arearranged at a point above the upper cross-entry 10 so as to extend thetotal working face to include a face 40 along the enlarged portion 16"of the panel 16 and also the working face 41 along the side of theadjacent lower block 15. The working faces 40 and 41 are thereforeprogressed ing engine 23. The scraper and winding en-. laterally untilthey reach a line indicated in gine are of the usual form and need notbe described in detail. The tailrope 22 is turned over sheaves 25, 26and 27, so as to permit the scraper to be moved reciprocably through one'of the side entries and along the side wall of one of the blocks 15 asshown in the upper tier in this figure. The tracks 28 serving thisloading machine extend from one side entry 11 through the cross entry 10and down one of the cross entries, as for instance a cross entry 12, asshown, and thence through the lower entry 10. Thewinding n gine 23 islocated opposite the common entry 14 in which the loading is to proceed.In the form shown the winding engine. is preferably located on theopposite side of the track in the space 30 formed by cutting out a partof the extended block portion 16*. A loading chute 31 of any approvedform is locatedin the common entry 14 in position to permit the scraperto unload the material on the mme cars.

With the apparatus in the position just described it will be seen thatthe material may be dislodged from the side of the block 15 in the entry13, thus-forming a working face 32 which progresses laterally as themining operations proceed. When the working face 32 has reached theposition of the dotted line indicated by 33 the workis discontinued,inasmuch as it is usually desirable dotted lines at 40 and 41 formingsubstantially a continuation of the side of the narrow portion 16 of theupper block 16. Operations are then transferred to the other side of theblock 15 and 16 until a similarreached this stage it will be observedthat a pair of elongated pillars are left standing as a support for theroof, the upper pillar comprising the remaining portion of the block 16and the lower pillar comprising the remaining portion of the lower block15 corresponding with the pillar 35 Which has already been described inconnection with the operations on the upper tier of blocks 15. With myimproved system the line of movement of the scraper may be maintained insubstantially straight lines between the moving chute and the movableguide 25, thus eliminating the necessity, of changing the course ofmovement of the scraper to any great degree. This is a distinctadvantage in the operation of scrapers of this character in view of themanifest difficulty of providing satisfactory means for turning orchanging the forward course of movement of the scraper. My systemfurthermore affords considerable variation in the manner in which it maybe carried out either in,the shape of the blocks, the number of shapeor/and size ofthe pillars which may manifestly be varied widely,depending upon the vworking conditions.- The develop ment of my improvedsystem is such that it is unnecessary to clean out material fromcorners, as in room and pillar methods.

I claim as my invention:

1. The method of min'ng, which consists; in initially forming a purality of substan-.

tially parallel cross-entries, and aplurality of connecting entriesbetween adjacent crossentries, said connecting entries being nonparallelwith each other through a portion of their length and arranged in pairsto meet at a common point at said cross-entries,

the common meeting points of the connecting entries being in offsetrelation with the 1 corresponding meeting points in the adjaing devicesexten in said connecting entrles and loading at centcross entries, andremoving the material from the resulting blocks by scraper loading alongworking faces predetermined common meeting points in the cross-entries.blocks to be worked at one time, or the' 2. The method of mining, whichconsists in initially forming a plurality of substantially parallelcross-entries, and a plurality of connecting entries between adjacentcrossentries, said connecting entries being nonparallel with eachother through a portion of their length and arranged in pairs to meetata common point at said cross en tries, "the common meeting points ofthe connecting entries being in offset relation with the correspondingmeeting points in the adjacent cross entries, and removing the materialfrom the resulting blocks by scraper loading devices extending. alongworking faces formed continuously along a plurality of offset connectingentries in adjacent tlers of blocks, and loading at predetermined commonmeeting points in the cross entries. i Signed at Chicago, in the countyof Cook and Stateof Illinois, this28th day of November, A. D. 1924. i

c JAMES W. PEARCE.

